The Dual Meet Hall of Fame

Like I said, he was talking about the Penn Relays. But it got me to thinking. Instead of a single track meet, how about a type of meet?

The dual meet was once the backbone of the college season. Eastern and midwestern teams ran a lot of relay meets too, but every single team used to run multiple duals. Like Mark Twain, the rumors of its death have been greatly exaggerated, and the dual is making a bit of a comeback.

I think it’s high time to honor the history, the traditions, and the great achievements in college dual meets. I’m starting up the College Dual Meet Hall of Fame, and the initial class of honorees will be unveiled this week.

Inductions will be held twice a year, once at the beginning of the indoor season (with an eastern/northern emphasis) and once at the end of the outdoor regular season (with a western/southern emphasis).

Some of our college rivalries in track are as old as, or older than, the classic rivalries in college football, and that sense of being part of a something bigger than yourself, or even the here and now, is a significant part of the draw of sports.

With that in mind, tomorrow’s initial honoree will be not an athlete or a coach or any other single person, but a rivalry. I think you can guess what rivalry it will be.